DeWeese v. Anchor Hocking Consumer and Industrial Products Group

628 A.2d 421, 427 Pa. Super. 47, 1993 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2253
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedJuly 8, 1993
Docket01869
StatusPublished
Cited by56 cases

This text of 628 A.2d 421 (DeWeese v. Anchor Hocking Consumer and Industrial Products Group) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
DeWeese v. Anchor Hocking Consumer and Industrial Products Group, 628 A.2d 421, 427 Pa. Super. 47, 1993 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2253 (Pa. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinions

[49]*49OLSZEWSKI, Judge:

This is an appeal from an order granting summary judgment in favor of defendants below [hereinafter “Anchor Hocking” and “Lewis Brothers”]. Appellant [hereinafter “DeWeese”] was injured when a glass carafe exploded while he was filling it with hot water. The Honorable Livingstone Johnson granted summary judgment because DeWeese was unable to produce the carafe to defendants for inspection during discovery. We affirm.

DeWeese was employed by Highland Country Club [hereinafter “the club”] as a busboy and waiter. On December 1, 1985, DeWeese was responsible to set up a buffet line in preparation for the club’s Sunday morning brunch. As part of this duty, he filled numerous chafing dishes with hot water. DeWeese procured one of the glass pitchers which the club had in its store room and placed it under a coffee urn’s hot water spout, as was his customary practice. As the water filled the pitcher, it exploded and injured DeWeese’s hand. DeWeese was not holding the pitcher, but was standing in its immediate vicinity when the accident occurred. Although no one apparently witnessed the explosion, several employees rushed to DeWeese’s aid and summoned an ambulance. DeWeese was transported to the hospital and the club employees cleaned the area of the accident, discarding the remnants of the shattered pitcher.

DeWeese filed a complaint against Anchor Hocking and Lewis Brothers alleging, among other things, that the two companies were strictly liable as manufacturer and seller of the defective pitcher. Following discovery, Anchor Hocking and Lewis Brothers filed motions for summary judgment. Both parties contended that DeWeese’s failure to preserve the pitcher’s glass fragments effectively precluded them from defending against DeWeese’s contention that he was injured as a result of a defect in a pitcher manufactured by Anchor Hocking and sold by Lewis Brothers, relying on Roselli v. General Electric Co., 410 Pa.Super. 223, 599 A.2d 685 (1991), [50]*50appeal discontinued (1993). Judge Johnson granted both motions and DeWeese filed this timely appeal.1

Summary judgment may be granted when the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Pa.R.C.P. 1035(b), 42 Pa.C.S.A. When considering a motion for summary judgment, the trial court must examine the record in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, accept as true all well-pleaded facts in the non-moving party’s pleadings, and give him the benefit of all reasonable inferences drawn therefrom. Dibble v. Security of America Life Ins., 404 Pa.Super. 205, 590 A.2d 352 (1991); Lower Lake Dock Co. v. Messinger Bearing Corp., 395 Pa.Super. 456, 577 A.2d 631 (1990). Summary judgment should be granted only in cases that are free and clear of doubt. Marks v. Tasman, 527 Pa. 132, 589 A.2d 205 (1991). We will overturn a trial court’s entry of summary judgment only if we find an error of law or clear abuse of discretion. Lower Lake Dock Co., supra.

The only issue raised on appeal is whether Anchor Hocking and Lewis Brothers were precluded from preparing a defense as a result of DeWeese’s failure to preserve the pitcher fragments. This Court has held that where a plaintiff brings an action claiming that he suffered injury as a result of a defective product, his failure to produce the product for inspection by the defense will render summary judgment against him appropriate. Roselli, supra, 410 Pa.Super. at 228, 599 A.2d at 687-688. We held that allowing a cause of action to continue without the allegedly defective product is contrary to public policy:

[51]*51To permit claims of defective products where a purchaser of the product has simply thrown it away after an accident, would both encourage false claims and make legitimate defense of valid claims more difficult. It would put a plaintiff (or plaintiffs attorney) in the position of deciding whether the availability of the item would help or hurt his or her case. Where producing the product for defense inspection would weaken rather than strengthen a case, we unfortunately are obliged to conclude that some plaintiffs and attorneys would be unable to resist the temptation to have the product disappear.

Id. (quoting Martin and Greenspan v. Volkswagen of America, No. 88-8261, 1989 WL 81296 (E.D.Pa„ July 13, 1989) (unpublished)). In Roselli, we granted summary judgment in favor of a manufacturer of a coffee maker after plaintiff discarded the coffee pot which shattered in her hand.

DeWeese claims that Roselli is distinguishable from this case. He points to Anchor Hocking’s answers to interrogatories, in which Anchor Hocking admits that the type of pitcher which is allegedly involved in this case is not designed to withstand liquids which are at or near the boiling point. See, Reproduced record at 22-31. Thus, DeWeese contends, Anchor Hocking is not prejudiced in preparing a defense because an inspection of the discarded pitcher would serve no useful purpose. While we find this argument persuasive, we are constrained to affirm. DeWeese’s failure to preserve the pitcher is fatal in a much more fundamental respect — without the pitcher, there is simply no evidence tending to establish that the pitcher involved in this case was manufactured by Anchor Hocking or sold by Lewis Brothers.

In order to establish a successful cause of action in products liability, a plaintiff must prove that a defect in a product proximately caused injury to him or her, which defect existed at the time the product left defendant’s control. Roselli, supra, at 410 Pa.Super. 228-229, 599 A.2d 685; Dauphin Deposit Bank and Trust Co. v. Toyota Motor Corp., 408 Pa.Super. 256, 596 A.2d 845 (1991). A plaintiff must also [52]*52establish that the injuries were caused by a product of a particular manufacturer. Berkebile v. Brantly Helicopter, 462 Pa. 83, 337 A.2d 893 (1975). “Summary judgment is proper when the plaintiff has failed to establish that the defendant’s products were the cause of plaintiffs injury.” Eckenrod v. GAF Corp., 375 Pa.Super. 187, 191, 544 A.2d 50, 52 (1988), alloc. denied, 520 Pa. 605, 553 A.2d 968 (1989).

Here, DeWeese testified that he could not recall the type of pitcher he used to fill the chafing dishes on the day of the accident. When asked how many pitchers were kept in the club’s storage area, DeWeese testified that there were more than a dozen. DeWeese’s deposition, at 23. He further testified:

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Bluebook (online)
628 A.2d 421, 427 Pa. Super. 47, 1993 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2253, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/deweese-v-anchor-hocking-consumer-and-industrial-products-group-pasuperct-1993.